This issue contains a series of papers that were invited following a workshop held in July 2011 at the University of Notre Dame London Center. The goal of the workshop was to present the latest advances in theory, experimentation, and modeling methodologies related to the role of mechanics in biological systems. Growth, morphogenesis, and many diseases are characterized by time dependent changes in the material properties of tissues—affected by resident cells—that, in turn, affect the function of the tissue and contribute to, or mitigate, the disease. Mathematical modeling and simulation are essential for testing and developing scientific hypotheses related to the physical behavior of biological tissues, because of the complex geometries, inhomogeneous properties, rate dependences, and nonlinear feedback interactions that it entails.
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